2017 Best Colleges Preview: Top 10 Public Universities
Applying to college is a journey that involves finding the right school, submitting applications and then -- if you're lucky -- choosing among the acceptance letters and financial aid awards to find that place you'll call home for the next few years.
To steer you in the right direction, U.S. News surveys colleges and universities each year and ranks nearly 1,400 of them in different categories according to our methodology.
Here, we offer a sneak peek of the 2017 Best Colleges rankings.
These 10 schools -- listed alphabetically below -- are the highest-ranking Top Public Schools among those in the National Universities category. National Universities emphasize faculty research and offer a full range of undergraduate majors, plus master's and doctoral programs. Public schools are typically operated under the supervision of state governments and give state residents discounted tuition.
School name (state) |
College of William and Mary (VA) |
Georgia Institute of Technology |
University of California--Berkeley |
University of California--Davis |
University of California--Irvine |
University of California--Los Angeles |
University of California--San Diego |
University of California--Santa Barbara |
University of Illinois--Urbana-Champaign |
University of Michigan--Ann Arbor |
University of North Carolina--Chapel Hill |
University of Virginia |
University of Wisconsin--Madison |
(Note: Due to ties, there are more than 10 schools listed here.)
The actual Top Public Schools rankings of these and other schools will be available Sept. 13, 2016, on usnews.com.
To see full rankings, SAT and ACT scores, scholarship and grant information, graduation rates and more, sign up for the U.S. News College Compass.
